差異去統合與後脫歐時代──北愛邊境問題之分析

An Analysis of Differentiated Disintegration and the Irish Border Problem in the Post-Brexit Era

北愛邊境問題，不僅是英國脫歐過程中的關鍵議題，亦為後脫歐時代英歐之間的未解難題。英國與歐盟達成的脫歐協議中，就北愛邊境問題，達成北愛爾蘭議定書。然而，北愛爾蘭議定書的運作，引發歐盟、英國中央政府、北愛、愛爾蘭間相互角力。另一方面，英國舉行脫歐公投後，差異去統合逐漸成為學界與政界備受關注的歐盟理論學派。英國脫離歐盟，成為歐盟差異去統合的最新重要研究個案。因此，本文此將應用差異去統合理論，分析後脫歐時代北愛邊境問題，並聚焦於北愛爾蘭議定書的運作與爭議。本文的雙重目的，在於分析後脫歐時代北愛邊境問題的發展與挑戰，並檢視差異去統合理論套用至北愛邊境個案呈現的理論優點與局限。

The Irish border problem, a contested issue in the Brexit process, constitutes to be an unsolved question for the UK and the EU in the post-Brexit era. The UK and the EU signed the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland as part of the Withdrawal Agreement. Nevertheless, the operation of the Ireland and Northern Ireland Protocol has triggered political wrestling amongst the EU, UK central government, Northern Ireland, and Ireland. Since the Brexit referendum, differentiated disintegration as a theoretical approach has attracted much attention in the study of European integration, and the UK’s withdrawal has been regarded as the latest and most significant case study.
This paper aims to explore the Irish border problem after Brexit, with a special focus on the implementation and controversy of the Northern Ireland Protocol, by employing the theoretical approach of differentiated disintegration. This paper is, therefore, designed with the dual purpose of conducting the empirical case study of the development and challenge of the Irish border problem in the post-Brexit era, and of examining the theoretical validity of differentiated disintegration against the case study of the Irish border problem.